President Obama Predicts Indiana Will Win NCAA Tournament

Christian Watford of the Indiana Hoosiers moves against Frank Kaminsky of the Wisconsin Badgers during a semifinal game of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at the United Center on March 16, 2013.

Jonathan DanielGetty Images

Originally published on March 20, 2013 9:21 am

"I'm going Big Ten, this year," President Obama told ESPN this morning, while he filled out his NCAA tournament bracket.

The bottom line: Obama picked Indiana, Florida, Louisville and Ohio State to advance to the final four.

Obama predicted the championship game will be played between Louisville and Indiana, which he called the "two best teams."

Ultimately, the Hoosiers would come out victors, Obama said. If that comes to be, it would be Indiana's first National Championship since 1987.

"I think it's Indiana's year," Obama said.

USA Today points out that the commander in chief has a checkered history with his picks. The paper reports:

"He likely hopes to improve on his performance last year, when he picked North Carolina to beat Kentucky, with Missouri and Ohio State rounding out his Final Four. Missouri's opening round loss to Norfolk State ended up ruining that prospect, while North Carolina lost to eventual runner-up Kansas in the Elite 8.

"In 2010 and 2011, Obama picked Kansas to win the title, with the Jayhawks suffering early losses in both tournaments. He certainly proved his proficiency in the early rounds in 2011 though, nailing 29 of the first 32 games to rank 492nd out of 5.9 million brackets heading into the Sweet 16 that year.

"The president correctly picked North Carolina to win the title in 2009, the only one of his Final Four teams to advance that year."